Things may not be so bad after all
by JupiterHalo
Summary: An AU fic that takes place in America. Darien is new in town, and needs some help. Will he find anyone who is willing to help him? Kind of Darien x Serena.


Hi hi everyone! It's been a long time, ne? Here's a new ficlet for all of you... a VERY AU fic, where the Senshi never existed. This also takes place in America. Darien and Serena are also older... Darien about 26, and Serena about 22. Okay? Enjoy!  
  
Title: Things may not be so bad after all  
Author: JupiterHalo  
Date Written: February 11, 2002  
Rating: PG  
Part: 1/1  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon or the characters associated with this show.  
  
"..." means talking  
'...' means thinking  
***** means change of scene  
  
Success is the ability to put into effect  
what is in your mind. ~F. Scott Fitzgerald  
**********************************************  
Darien scratched the top of his head and sighed. Here he was, new in town, and lost already.  
"Blast it," he muttered. Darien Chiba had come to Star, Colorado, to visit his grandmother, whom he had never seen before in his life.   
"How the heck can you be lost in such a little town like Star, Colorado?" he muttered again.  
He began to walk down the main street in town, his suitcase in one hand, looking for a place where he could relax and have a cup of hot coffee.   
As he walked, he noticed that everyone he passed avoided him at all costs.  
'Everyone in this town knows everyone else, and they don't like strangers, I guess.' he mused. Darien looked over to his left and saw a barbershop.   
'Well, that looks promising. I could use a haircut,' he thought.   
Darien reached up and touched his black hair absently, then walked quickly across the street and into the shop.   
As soon as Darien turned around, from closing the door, he realized that everyone had stopped what they had been doing and just stared at him.  
He stared right back, then said in an easy-going voice: "Afternoon, gentlemen. Got any room in your schedule for a haircut?" he asked the barber.  
The man quickly shook his head and muttered "You'd best be gettin' along, boy."  
The barber turned away, but Darien quickly grabbed his arm.  
"Well, maybe you could help me with something, then."  
Again, the barber muttered "No," but Darien ignored that.  
"I'm looking for my grandmother's house. I've never been here before, so I don't know where I'm going. And I want to see her as soon as possible."   
One of the men who were waiting for a haircut finally spoke up. "What's your name, boy?"  
"Darien Chiba."  
The man nodded. "Ahhh... I remember your mother." The man leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands. "A pretty little thing, she was..."   
Darien didn't like the way the man sounded and looked when he talked about his mother, so he decided to cut in. "So, can you give me directions to my grandmother's house or not?"   
The man shook his head. "Sorry, young Darien, but you had best be gettin' out of town." The man looked directly at Darien, then. "Your grandmother's never forgiven your mother for runnin' off and marryin' that Japanese boy, you know."  
Darien knew. His mother had told him the story when he was a little boy. He had been about seven, and he had asked his mother why he didn't have a grandma or a grandpa. His mother told him about how she had fallen in love with a Japanese-American man named Koyasu Chiba when she was young. His family owned a farm near her family's farm, so they got to see each other often. They grew very close, fell in love, and had gotten married. His mother had told him that her parents had objected to their marriage.   
"They hated him just because he had Japanese ancestors," his mother said. "Your grandfather fought in the Pacific during World War II, against the Japanese, and now they hate everyone of Japanese descent. They don't even see them as real people."   
Darien was shocked when he had heard this. How could anyone not love his kind, caring father?   
The man looked at Darien, who was lost in his own thoughts. "So, just take my advice, boy. I don't want you gettin' hurt." he said in a loud voice, making Darien jump. "You see, we don't take kindly to strangers around here."   
"Thanks, but I think I'll just keep looking around on my own." Darien sighed and left the shop. That had been a big waste of time. He sighed again and ran his hand through his hair in an exasperated gesture.   
He still wanted that coffee, though.  
Darien walked down the street again and looked for a restaurant or something of the like.   
He spotted one titled "Anne's Restaurant," and grinned. He walked around towards the front door of the restaurant, and opened it, stepping inside quickly.  
**********************************************  
Serena was wiping off the counter of the bar surrounding the kitchen, when she heard the door open. She looked up and saw the most handsome man she had ever seen in her life. Tall and muscular, but not too muscular. With shiny black hair and dark blue eyes, her heart jumped a little at the sight of him.   
He sat down at the end of the counter, and buried his face in his hands.  
Mary, another waitress who worked with Serena, poked Serena in the side.   
"Ow!" Serena glared at her. "And just what was that for?" She began rubbing her side a little.  
"You should go over and serve that guy." Mary grinned. "He's really handsome, don't you think?"  
Serena just rolled her eyes. Mary was trying to set her up with ANOTHER guy!  
Mary grinned again and shoved her towards Darien.   
"All right, all right! I'm going!" Serena grabbed a pad of paper and a pen, and walked towards Darien.  
**********************************************  
Darien sighed. Where the heck was his waitress?! He had been there for ONE MINUTE, and no one had come to serve him yet! Complete and total injustice, if you ask him.   
Suddenly, someone stood in front of him. He looked up and saw a woman.   
"You look tired," she said to him.   
He grinned. "Yeah, I am."  
Serena smiled back at him and flipped open her pad of paper. "Now, what can I get you?"  
"Coffee, please. Black."   
Serena wrote it down. "Okay, what else?"  
"Just coffee for now," Darien answered. He glanced at her nametag. Serena. It suited her, in a way he just couldn't put his finger on.   
She smiled at him again and walked off. His eyes followed her unconsciously. She returned quickly with a coffee cup and a pot of coffee.   
Setting the cup down, Serena looked at him again. "Are you sure I can't get you anything else?"   
"Well, possibly. Do you know a woman named Margaret Anderson?"  
Serena nodded.   
"Well, I'm trying to get to her house, but I've never been here before, so I have no idea where she lives."   
Pouring his coffee, Serena grinned. "Ah, you must be Darien Chiba, then."   
Darien looked shocked. "How did you know?"  
"Your grandmother's a regular around here. She told us that you would be visiting her. She's been looking forward to it for weeks."   
Darien grinned again. "I'm glad to hear it. I've been looking forward to it as well."  
Serena nodded again and grabbed a napkin. "Okay, here's how you get to her house..."   
Drawing a map on the napkin, she explained how to find the streets and where to turn.   
Darien sipped at his coffee absently, listening to her every word.  
When she was finished, she smiled. "I hope that things turn out in a good way with you and your grandmother."  
"Thanks, Serena. Maybe I'll see you around sometime?"  
She blushed a little. "Sure... I'd like that a lot."  
"Great. See you later, then." Darien got up and paid his bill. With a wink at Serena, he left Anne's and began walking again, this time filled with confidence.  
**********************************************  
Darien looked up from the napkin to the house he was standing in front of. He knew that after his grandfather had died, his grandmother Margaret had moved into a house in town.   
"Well, this is the place, I guess." He took a deep breath and started walking towards the house.  
"Darien? Darien Chiba, is that you?" He looked up to see an elderly woman standing on the porch of the house, a big smile on her face.   
"Yeah, Grandma, it's me."   
With a little cry, Margaret hurled herself down the steps and into Darien's waiting arms. She may be past seventy, but she was still as athletic as a girl.  
Darien hugged her tightly and whispered into her ear: "I've been waiting my whole life to meet you."  
After the hugs and kisses, they turned and went into the house, already having a noisy conversation about life in general.   
Maybe this town wasn't so bad, after all.  
**********************************************  
So, what did everyone think? Please e-mail me with feedback at SetsunaPuu21@cs.com or review! Thank you so much for reading this!  
  
Love always,  
~JupiterHalo~ 


End file.
